Tredje AP fonden Lowers Stock Holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Tredje AP fonden trimmed its position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 10.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,710,286 shares of the company’s stock after selling 195,885 shares during the quarter. Coca-Cola makes up approximately 1.0% of Tredje AP fonden’s portfolio, making the stock its 22nd biggest holding. Tredje AP fonden’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $106,482,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of KO. Howard Capital Management Group LLC raised its stake in Coca-Cola by 0.5% in the third quarter. Howard Capital Management Group LLC now owns 399,607 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,716,000 after purchasing an additional 2,069 shares in the last quarter. United Bank raised its stake in Coca-Cola by 65.4% in the third quarter. United Bank now owns 80,888 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,813,000 after purchasing an additional 31,979 shares in the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Coca-Cola by 6.5% in the third quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,994 shares of the company’s stock valued at $359,000 after purchasing an additional 305 shares in the last quarter. Aigen Investment Management LP purchased a new stake in Coca-Cola in the third quarter valued at approximately $932,000. Finally, Aptus Capital Advisors LLC raised its stake in Coca-Cola by 10.7% in the third quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 47,665 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,425,000 after purchasing an additional 4,613 shares in the last quarter. 70.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Coca-Cola Stock Down 1.5 %

Shares of Coca-Cola stock opened at $69.95 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $300.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.32, a P/E/G ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.57. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $65.87 and its 200-day moving average price is $66.61. The Coca-Cola Company has a 52-week low of $57.93 and a 52-week high of $73.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 1.03.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.55 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.51 by $0.04. Coca-Cola had a net margin of 22.59% and a return on equity of 45.37%. Equities research analysts forecast that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 EPS for the current year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a $0.51 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.92%. This is a boost from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. Coca-Cola’s payout ratio is 82.59%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on KO. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the company from $69.00 to $75.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $68.00 to $70.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Piper Sandler lifted their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Coca-Cola has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $74.24.

Insider Activity at Coca-Cola

In other Coca-Cola news, CEO James Quincey sold 145,435 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.01, for a total transaction of $10,327,339.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 342,546 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $24,324,191.46. This trade represents a 29.80 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Nikolaos Koumettis sold 54,708 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.96, for a total value of $3,882,079.68. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 246,909 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $17,520,662.64. This represents a 18.14 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 288,146 shares of company stock worth $20,456,524 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

About Coca-Cola

The Coca-Cola Company, a beverage company, manufactures, markets, and sells various nonalcoholic beverages worldwide. The company provides sparkling soft drinks, sparkling flavors; water, sports, coffee, and tea; juice, value-added dairy, and plant-based beverages; and other beverages. It also offers beverage concentrates and syrups, as well as fountain syrups to fountain retailers, such as restaurants and convenience stores.